Promoting the life and legacy of Rachel Carson, 5/27/1907 - 4/14/1964. Fostering a culture of Sentinel Lions who share Rachel's ethics and values. Working for sustained political and cultural change to prioritize public health.

2/22/13

UN, WHO panel calls hormone-disrupting
chemicals a 'global threat'

By Brian Bienkowski,Environmental Health News,Feb. 19, 2013

An international team of experts reported today that evidence
linking hormone-mimicking chemicals to human health problems has grown
stronger over the past decade, becoming a "global threat"
that should be addressed. The report is a joint effort by the World
Health Organization and the United Nations Environment Programme to
give policy makers the latest information on chemicals that seem to
mess with the hormones of people and wildlife...

About the Contest

The 7th Annual Rachel Carson Intergenerational Sense of Wonder ContestWe are pleased to announce the 7th Annual Sense of Wonder
Contest. Songwriting has been added to the categories of artistic
expression. There is also a new sponsor: the Legacy Project, who joins
our long-time sponsors of the contest. The deadline for entries is
Monday, June 10, 2013.

2/18/13

It has been more than 50 years since
Rachel Carson published her groundbreaking book "Silent Spring".
Derided by scientists at the time, she is now regarded as a hero by environmental
progressives and a villain by many others, but Carson certainly changed how the
public views environmentalism.

One area of Carson's career that is
often overlooked is her time as a government employee. This is where she got
her true start in journalism and it is the area G. Pascal Zachary, professor of
practice with the Consortium for Science, Policy and Outcomes at Arizona State
University, will be discussing at the 2013 American Association for the
Advancement of Science (AAAS) annual meeting in Boston. Zachary is part of the
panel, A 50 Year Legacy: Why does Rachel Carson Matter?

Zachary, who co-organized the panel
along with ASU professor Jane Maienschein, gave his talk, "Back to the
Future: The Rachel Carson 'Model' as a Response to the Crisis in Science
Journalism," today (Feb. 17).

"At a time when popular writers
wanted to write about serious subjects and devote themselves to learning, there
was little support for them commercially," Zachary said on Carson and her
early career. "I'm intrigued about how her career suggests a way forward
for government to support serious writing and journalism about science and the
environment."

Carson served as an information officer
with the U.S. Bureau of Fisheries and the Fish and Wildlife Service for nearly
two decades before becoming an independent writer. During that time, she
reported on news and findings from the agency.

Zachary believes Carson's experience
and work in this field is what shaped her later writings. Additionally, he saw
her early government work as an opportunity. With publications such as the New
York Times recently disposing of their environmental desk, Zachary thinks the
format of having government employees writing about science could be the way of
the future.

"I'm trying to see Rachel Carson
in both a historical sense and prefiguring and anticipating a movement that
will reform or revolutionize science journalism today," Zachary said.

"When I talk about her as a model
for the crisis in science journalism, what I mean is currently there is less
and less quality science journalism," he added. "As a community, we
have to figure out how to draw the line and get a minimal amount of quality
science journalism."

2/16/13

WASHINGTON,
DC -- Congresswoman Eleanor Holmes Norton (D-DC) announced today that
she will reintroduce tomorrow a bill, the Rachel Carson Nature Trail
Designation Act of 2013, to commemorate Rachel Carson, the environmental
pioneer and an inspiration for the development of the environmental
movement.

The idea for the bill, which designates a National Park
Service trail in Glover Archbold Park in the District of Columbia in
honor of Carson, was brought to the Congresswoman’s attention by Glover
Park residents.

Carson, who was a federal employee, often used Glover
Archbold Park in the District as a site from which she drew observations
about nature and the environment. “My bill celebrates Carson herself,
federal employees, the environmental movement, and the diverse geography
that makes D.C. unique among major cities,” Norton said. A
world-renowned environmental scientist, writer, and educator, Carson
worked as the Editor-in-Chief for the U.S. Department of Fish and
Wildlife Service's publications department. She performed research on
the dangers of pesticides, and her findings were sustained by the
Science Advisory Committee, created during President John F. Kennedy’s
administration. As a result, federal and state legislatures enacted
pesticide legislation and her work paved the way for groundbreaking
environmental protection legislation in this country and throughout the
world. She published her seminal work, Silent Spring, in 1962.
Carson was inducted into the American Academy of Arts and Letters and
received many other honors. She died in 1964.

Last year,
Norton testified at a meeting of the National Capital Memorial Advisory
Commission on the bill. The commission asked for additional
information on Carson’s work in the park. Norton and D.C. residents are
providing the commission with the requested information, and Norton
expects the commission to support the designation at their next meeting.

2/14/13

2/8/13

Chlorpyrifos Preliminary
Volatilization Assessment Suggests Bystander Risks of Concern; EPA
Requests Comment to Address Uncertainties The EPA is requesting comment on a
preliminary evaluation of the potential risks to children and other
bystanders from volatilization of chlorpyrifos from treated crops. While
there are uncertainties associated with EPA’s preliminary assessment,
the available data indicate that vapor phase chlorpyrifos may be emitted
from treated fields at levels resulting in exposure to children and
others who live, work, attend school or otherwise spend time nearby. In
some circumstances, these bystanders may be exposed to chlorpyrifos
and/or the transformation product chlorpyrifos-oxon at concentrations
that could cause adverse effects. More information at http://www.epa.gov/oppfead1/cb/csb_page/updates/2013/chlorpyrifos-pva.htmlThe chlorpyrifos preliminary volatility
assessment, guide to commenters , and related documents are available
in docket EPA-HQ-OPP-2008-0850 at www.regulations.gov.

What is GroundTruth?Noun. What actually happens on the ground or in the field.Verb. Using information collected on the ground to verify or correct presumed, modeled or computed expectations of reality.Blog. The fertile soil in which democratic, science-based solutions thrive by telling the truth about pesticides.

Keep new bee-toxic pesticide off the market
While policymakers in Europe are making moves to restrict
bee-harming pesticides, EPA is poised to approve widespread use of yet
another one. Bees need protection from known harms, not exposure to new
threats. We have until February 12 to make some noise! Take Action»